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Common Writing Mistakes
He stayed awhile; he stayed for a while. *'Besides' is other than; beside is next to. *The singular of biceps '''is biceps; the singular of triceps is triceps. *There’s no such thing as a bicep; there’s no such thing as a tricep *A '''blond man, a blond woman; he’s a blond, she’s a blonde. *A capital is a city (or a letter, or part of a column); a capitol is a building. *Something centres on something else, not around it. *If you’re talking about a thrilling plot point, the word is climactic; if you’re discussing the weather, the word is climatic. *A cornet is an instrument; a coronet '''is a crown. *One '''emigrates from a place; one''' immigrates''' to a place. *The word is enmity, not emnity. *One goes to work every day, or nearly, but eating lunch is an everyday occurrence. *A flair '''is a talent; a '''flare is an emergency signal. *A flier is someone who flies planes; a flyer is a piece of paper. *'Flower bed', not flowerbed. *'Free rein', not free reign. *To garner is to accumulate, as a waiter garners tips; to garnish (in the non-parsley meaning) is to take away, as the government garnishes one’s wages; a garnishee is a person served with a garnishment;' to garnishee' is also to serve with a garnishment (that is, it’s a synonym for “to garnish”). *A gel is a jelly; it’s also a transparent sheet used in stage lighting. When Jell-O sets, or when one’s master plan takes final form, it either jells or gels (though I think the former is preferable). *Bears are grizzly; crimes are grisly. Cheap meat, of course, is gristly. *Coats go on hangers; planes go in hangars. *One’s sweetheart is “'hon',” not “hun,” unless one’s sweetheart is Attila (not, by the way, Atilla) or perhaps Winnie-the-Pooh (note hyphens). *One insures cars; one ensures success; one assures people. *'Lawn mower', not lawnmower. *The past tense of lead is led, not lead. *One loathes someone else but is loath to admit one’s distaste. *If you’re leeching, you’re either bleeding a patient with a leech or otherwise sucking someone’s or something’s lifeblood. If you’re leaching, you’re removing one substance from another by means of a percolating liquid (I have virtually no idea what that means; I trust that you do). *You wear a mantle; your fireplace has a mantel. *'Masseurs' are men; masseuses are women. (These days they’re all called massage therapists anyway.) *The short version of microphone is still, so far as RH is concerned, mike. Not, ick, “mic.” *'Mucus' is a noun; mucous is an adjective. *'Nerve-racking', not -wracking; racked with guilt, not wracked with guilt. *One buys a newspaper at a newsstand, not a newstand. *An ordinance is a law; ordnance is ammo. *'Palette' has to do with colour;' palate' has to do with taste; a pallet is, among other things, something you sleep on. Eugene Pallette was a character actor; he’s particularly good in the 1943 film Heaven Can Wait. *Noun wise, a premier is a diplomat; a''' premiere''' is something one attends. “Premier” is also, of course, an adjective denoting quality. *'Prophecy' is a noun; prophesy '''is a verb. *Please don’t mix '''somewhat and something into one murky modifier. A thing is somewhat rare, or it’s something of a rarity. *A tick bites; a tic is a twitch. *'Tortuous' '''is twisty, circuitous, or tricky; '''torturous is painful, or painfully slow. *'Transsexual', not transexual. *'Troops' are military; troupes are theatrical. *A vice '''is depraved; a '''vise squeezes. *'Vocal cords'; strikes a chord. *A smart aleck is a wise guy; a mobster is a wiseguy. *'X ray' '''is a noun; '''X-ray is a verb or adjective.